Magnitude 4.9 quake hits near Bakersfield, California: USGS
(Reuters) – A magnitude 4.9 quake struck northwest of Bakersfield, California, on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Texas hospitals say they have developed rapid test for Zika
AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) – Two major Texas health centers have developed what they are calling the country’s first hospital-based, rapid test for the Zika virus that can produce results in a matter of hours, the hospitals said on Tuesday.
Exclusive: U.S. airfares to Puerto Rico slide; debt crisis, Zika weigh
NEW YORK/SAN JUAN (Reuters) – U.S. airlines have slashed leisure fares to Puerto Rico in recent months to lure travelers to the debt-strapped island, hit by economic turmoil and lately the arrival of the mosquito-borne Zika virus.
Race car driver pleads not guilty in U.S. payday lending case
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A race car driver pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges stemming from what U.S. prosecutors called his role in a $2 billion online payday lending enterprise that exploited 4.5 million cash-strapped consumers.
Oregon mom gets life in prison for throwing autistic son off bridge
SEATTLE (Reuters) – An Oregon woman has been sentenced to life in prison for throwing her autistic 6-year-old son over 100 feet to his death from a bridge in the coastal town of Newport in 2014, prosecutors said on Tuesday.
Colombia drug cartel leader gets 25 years in U.S. prison
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The former leader of a violent Colombian drug cartel was sentenced on Tuesday to 25 years in a U.S. prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to import massive amounts of cocaine into the United States.
Maryland teaching assistant faces federal charges in school sex abuse case
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Maryland teaching assistant accused of filming sex videos of children in an elementary school bathroom was charged on Tuesday with federal child pornography violations as well as new state charges, prosecutors said.
N.Y. jury awards firefighters $183 million in deadly 2005 blaze
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Five firefighters and their families have been awarded $183 million by a New York City jury following a trial stemming from a deadly 2005 apartment building blaze on a day that became known as “Black Sunday.”
Ithaca, N.Y. mayor proposes supervised drug injection facility
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The upstate New York city of Ithaca could be home to the first public facility in the United States that would allow heroin users to inject the drug under medical supervision, if Mayor Svante Myrick gets his way.
Georgia state House votes to allow guns on public college campuses
ATLANTA (Reuters) – Concealed handguns would be allowed on Georgia’s public college campuses under a measure that cleared the state’s House of Representatives and now heads to the Senate over the objections of university leaders.




